Help Tanerdy Farm after massive flooding Pontyates

Approximately 272 lambs and sheep were swept away by the massive flood water. They are dead now.

Hi, Azadi Farm (business name) is a small family farm started this year by a couple, Kiyan Freedom and Tetiana, who survived many disasters in their own countries and decided to build a new life here in Wales, the UK.

My husband successfully beat cancer, and we decided to start something meaningful to help us recover from the mental struggles we went through.

Unfortunately, the morning of 4th September 2025 did not start as usual for us. Within just a couple of minutes, water rushed into our fields. It was a massive flood that our neighbours had never seen before in this area (Pontyates, South Wales). The water was over 2 meters deep — we had to dive to rescue our sheep and lambs.

One of our neighbours came immediately to help us with his tractor. Sadly, the attempt was unsuccessful — the engine burnt out, and he was stuck in the water. To save his life, my husband decided to use our farm’s 4x4. We managed to pull him out, but afterwards, our car’s wheel system broke. Now, not only do we need to repair our own vehicle, but we also must compensate our neighbour for his tractor.

What about 999?

We called them straight away. We called the animal agency, and 999 and the fire service. Only one fire officer, Nick, arrived about half an hour later to see what could be done. Unfortunately, they couldn’t help. The Carmarthen team was in training, the Swansea team was busy. An hour later, the Carmarthen team became available, but they still needed to return to the station, collect equipment, and then come to our farm — another couple of hours. By then, we had already called friends from Swansea, two of whom arrived quickly and started helping us.

With our bare hands, we rescued the animals one by one, in deep water with a visible movement — which was unusual, as the river here is usually so narrow. And yes, we had no special clothing, no boots, no boats — nothing.

Right now, we are still counting the losses. Approximately 272 lambs and sheep were swept away by the water as the new fence was broken by this massive water. We are still receiving calls from neighbouring farms that they see dead sheep by bridge 3–4 miles away from us.

The morning was full of tears and shock. My hands are still shaking as I write this, trying not to forget the details.

The money we are collecting will go towards recovering our farm after this massive flood, repairing the tractor, fixing our car, fixing the fence and covering future vet bills.

Thank you to everyone who can support a couple who decided to become farmers.

With gratitude,

Tetiana